


what i wouldn't do for you

by kinneyb



Series: giving back [10]
Category: Lucifer (TV), The Magicians (TV), The Magicians - Lev Grossman
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-25
Updated: 2020-02-25
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:28:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22897216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinneyb/pseuds/kinneyb
Summary: When something unexpected happens, Fairy!Quentin has to find a way to save Eliot and Margo.
Relationships: Quentin Coldwater/Eliot Waugh
Series: giving back [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1405969
Comments: 3
Kudos: 33





	what i wouldn't do for you

**Author's Note:**

> hope yall enjoy <333
> 
> twitter: queermight  
> tumblr: korrmin

Quentin had overheard Eliot and Margo whispering about something. He only caught bits and pieces – _Magicians? Kidnapped? By who?_ – but it was enough to make him sincerely worried, so he flew over and landed on Eliot’s shoulder.

Eliot had told him briefly about a group of criminals who’d been kidnapping Magicians and forcing them to perform acts of magic for them, obviously skipping most of the details.

“But you and Margo are - ”

Margo had reached over and scooped him up in her hands. “We’re _badasses_ , Q,” she said. “You don’t have to worry about us.”

Quentin believed her. He’d never seen Margo _or_ Eliot go down without a fight. He nuzzled her thumb.

“Just be safe,” he said, and Margo smacked a kiss to the top of his head, his hair catching in her gloss.

+

Eliot and Margo rarely went places without Q. But it was a rainy day and Quentin frankly _hated_ the rain. He couldn’t fly in it and his wings got all wet and heavy.

So he told Eliot and Margo to go have dinner without him. They were celebrating; Eliot had just gotten hired as the head chef for a big upcoming event.

Eliot had been equally excited about the exposure _and_ money.

“So much money,” he’d told Quentin. “Like _so_ much.”

Perhaps it was a fairy thing but he still didn’t completely understand the concept of money or why humans cared about it, but Quentin had jumped up and down in excitement for him, anyway.

Eliot hesitated at the door but Margo, ever the braver one, tugged on his arm.

“He’ll be _fine_ ,” she said. “Right, Q? What do you do when you’re home alone?”

Quentin perked up. “Lock the door and don’t answer it for anyone but you or Eliot,” he recited.

Eliot snorted, obviously relaxing. Margo grabbed the umbrella by the door and winked at Q.

“Don’t have _too_ much fun without us,” she said.

Quentin laughed. He was sitting on the couch with a book, four sizes bigger than him. “I won’t,” he assured her, wings fluttering.

“Be safe,” Eliot said, seriously.

Quentin nodded. “I will be,” he replied, meaning it. He never wanted Eliot to worry.

Looking satisfied with his reply, Eliot followed Margo out of the door. Quentin flew over and locked it. He always missed them when they left but at least he knew it wouldn’t be long before they returned. Eliot had assured him it was only dinner and nothing else, two hours tops.

+

Except… they didn’t return after two hours or three or _four_. Quentin waited by the door, wings keeping him afloat. He heard footsteps and waited, hoping it was them but –

the footsteps continued down the hall, obviously a neighbor or something.

Quentin flew around frantically. He needed to do something. Something wasn’t right.

Eliot and Margo would _never_ do this to him. At the very least they’d call or something. Eliot had installed a landline, saying it was for Q’s safety, and Margo had laughed, eyes twinkling.

“What is this, the _90s_?”

Quentin had admittedly not really understood the joke but he never questioned Margo’s jokes.

Deciding he couldn’t wait any longer, he flew over to the phone and tried calling Eliot. He didn’t answer, so he tried Margo. She also didn’t answer.

His heart thumped loudly in his chest. Something was wrong. Quentin’s wings flapped quickly, like they always did when he was especially anxious about something.

That’s when Quentin saw it: the piece of paper stuck to the refrigerator with a magnet.

_Lucifer_ ; he’d given them their number after they met last time and told them to call or pay him a visit if they were ever in trouble. He flew closer. Lucifer’s number was on the paper, but so was his address. Q quickly flew back to the phone and tried to call him, but he didn’t answer.

Hanging up, he flew around the living room, tugging at his hair. He had to do something.

He had to –

Quentin glanced at the refrigerator again. Nodding, once, he flew over and grabbed the paper, folding it up. He needed help.

Flying to the door, he unlocked it. A part of him was screaming _don’t do it._ Eliot had always been so strict about him not going out by himself, especially considering he wouldn’t be able to hide himself. He wasn’t able to do the cloaking spell without them.

He squared his shoulders. But Eliot and Margo needed his help, so what if he had to break a few rules?

+

Finding Lucifer was not an easy task. Mostly because Quentin did know not what he was looking at.

He had found a map of the city, which was way too big and weighing him down immensely, but it wasn’t much help anyway considering he had no idea how to read a map.

“Idiot,” he muttered as he flew around helplessly, hiding whenever humans got too close to him.

Finally, he had a breakthrough: he _felt_ something. Quentin vaguely recognized it as Lucifer’s power, a tangible thing. His wings fluttered and he took off, dropping the map.

He followed the pull until he found a big building. _Lux_ was written on the front in glowing letters.

Quentin ignored it and flew to the top where he knew Lucifer had to be, where his power was most potent. He saw Lucifer through the windows, sitting at the bar.

He took a deep breath, bursting through the windows, glitter falling all around him, floating in the air. Quentin hadn’t even _meant_ to do, but his nerves had his magic acting all wonky. Lucifer turned, startled, eyes glowing like he was prepared for a fight.

He relaxed the second he saw Q, smiling. “The fairy,” he said. “What are you doing here?”

“I need your help!” he blurted, flying over. He gestured wildly with his arms. “Eliot and Margo are – I think they’ve been kidnapped.” He kept gesturing wildly, even as Lucifer took him in his hands, an amused quirk to his lips. “ _Please_ help.”

Lucifer shushed him, not unkindly. “Why do you think that?”

Quentin took a shaky breath and settled down, telling him the whole story. Lucifer listened intently.

“Okay,” he said once he was finished. “I’ll help.”

Quentin beamed, feeling hopeful. “Really?”

“Of course,” Lucifer said. “I _am_ a man of my word.”

+

After that, they did a lot of investigating. Well, _Lucifer_ did most of it. He was much faster at using the computer and didn’t have to hide every time he went outside. He tracked down one of the men who had been involved in the first kidnapping, Q on his shoulder. But the man said he wasn’t involved in that stuff, not anymore, and that he had turned a new leaf.

Quentin frankly did not understatement the terminology, but Lucifer released him. “Tell me where you think we’ll find them and I’ll be lenient,” he said, sickeningly sweet.

“Um, there’s this place downtown. Just – let me write it down for you.”

Quentin watched, silent and impatient, wings fluttering as the man scribbled something down. Directions, he realized. His wings fluttered again but for an entirely different reason: _hope_. Lucifer folded the paper up neatly and tucked it in a pocket of his jacket.

“So…” the man said nervously. “Can I – ”

Lucifer punched him, and Quentin startled. The man fell to the ground and groaned in pain.

“I told you I’d be lenient,” Lucifer said as he turned and walked to the exit. “Consider yourself lucky.”

+

Q was silent on Lucifer’s shoulder as the man walked through the busy streets of the city.

“What are you thinking about, little one?” he asked eventually, startling Quentin out of his thoughts.

He shifted, biting his bottom lip, wings fluttering nervously. Lucifer had apparently been able to use his powers to help cloak him, so there was no harm in him sitting on his shoulder, which he appreciated because he didn’t really want to be in the dark restraints of his jacket or pocket right now.

Quentin looked out at the passing faces of strangers. “Do know how Eliot and Margo found me?” he asked quietly.

Lucifer hmmed, “I do not.”

“I was, um – I was being held captive by some rotten Magicians,” he smiled slightly. “I was in really bad shape; they basically saw me as a pet, a status of some sort. I didn’t think I’d ever get out of there and I’d kind of just… accepted my fate.”

Lucifer let out a sound, sympathetic and calming. “Humans, even Magicians, can be cruel.”

“I know,” he agreed with a little sad laugh. “But then Margo and Eliot found me and – and they were so _good_ to me – ”

He had sudden flashbacks of when they’d first rescued him;

_he’d been so weak he could hardly stand on his own and he certainly couldn’t fly, and Margo had let him sleep in her room because “I have the softest pillows, El, suck it” and she’d been right, her pillows were like clouds and he slept for days, only waking up when –_

_Eliot would come in with food. He’d always had have this kind of sheepish look on his face._

_“Sorry,” he said, sitting on the edge of the bed as Q sat up with a wince of pain. “I don’t really know what fairies normally eat, so.”_

_He placed a small bowl of soup on the bed on a platter and fed Q, spoonful after spoonful. It was warm and salty and Quentin found that he loved it._

_When he told Eliot as much, the man had smiled brightly. “Okay, good.”_

_Or when they had to patch him up and swap out his bandages because he had a few injuries. Normally he’d be able to help himself but he was too weak from months of captivity to do it._

_Surprisingly, it was usually Margo who changed his bandages. She always said it because she had steadier hands but sometimes Quentin questioned her (silently, of course, he learned fairly quickly no one questioned Margo Hanson and got away with it)._

_She was uncharacteristically gentle as she removed his bandages and grabbed a roll of new ones._

_“You know,” she said as she cut the bandages to Q’s size, “I wish we had killed those men for what they did to you.” She spoke such cruel words, cool and confident._

_Quentin looked back at her over his shoulder as she gently began wrapping his stomach. “Don’t,” he said, softly._

_Margo startled before she relaxed again, a small smile playing at her lips. “You’re a good person – uh, fairy or whatever, Q, for not wanting that.”_

_“I think they were terrible people,” he agreed, “but I’m just… happy to be here. Away from them.”_

_Finished, Margo gently laid him back on her pillow, brushing hair out of his face with her finger. “Don’t let my hard, cold exterior mislead you,” she said, smiling coyly, “I’m happy you’e here, too.”_

_After a month or so, Margo announced that they had a gift for him and Q watched with wide eyes._

_She glanced at Eliot and they shared a smile before placing the gift – a small bed, Quentin realized – in front of him. It was just big enough for his body and an almost perfect replica of Margo’s bed with the super soft pillows and everything._

_“Fuck,” Eliot said quickly. “Q, are you okay?”_

_Quentin looked up and barely realized he’d been crying. He laughed wetly and nodded. “I’m just – wow.”_

_Margo puffed her chest out, brushing her hair off her shoulders. “You’re part of this family now, Q, whether you decide you want to stay or not, you will always be part of it.”_

_And that – that just made him cry harder._

_Eliot glared at Margo with no real heat, who just blanched, “I was being nice!”_

_Sitting down, they both huddled around Quentin and he quieted down, switching between resting more heavily against Margo or Eliot. They both had very comfortable laps._

_They’d been so nice to him when they had no reason to be; Eliot constantly bringing him soup just because he knew Q liked it, Margo always saying nice things in her own Margo way, changing his bandages, they both switched between performing small healing spells until finally, one day, Quentin’s power had returned enough he could do them himself and –_

_and Margo and Eliot had both looked so happy and so sad, a complicated mix of emotions on their faces._

_Quentin had known, right then and there, that he never wanted to leave them._

Lucifer startled him out of his thoughts by saying, “We’re going to find them, okay? Don’t worry.”

He was honestly less worried about that and more worried about what _condition_ they would be in when they did find them. He didn’t say that, though.

Lucifer stopped and Q looked up. They were standing in front of an abandoned building made out of metal and steel. He took a deep breath.

“Ready, little one?” he asked, and Quentin nodded without missing a beat.

+

Lucifer kicked down the door and Quentin clung to his hair as a few men jumped up, holding beams, ready to attack. Lucifer did not stutter even once, all confident, as the men threw themselves at him. He took each one down, one right after the other –

Q noticed a man sneaking out of the dark behind Lucifer and flapped his wings, hard, taking him down with a burst of magic. Lucifer winked at him.

Once they were finished, Lucifer continued down the hall and Quentin almost sobbed when he heard the muffled sounds of Eliot and Margo through a door.

Lucifer grabbed the doorknob and swung it open. Quentin _did_ sob at the sight of Eliot and Margo, banged up but okay, tied in chairs with gags in their mouths.

Eliot’s eyes widened and he pulled harder at the restraints. Margo screamed through her gag.

There was four men in the room and they all turned at the instruction. The leader was easily spotted by the way the others glanced at him as if for instructions.

“How did you – ” one of the men asked. “The door was _locked_.”

Lucifer shrugged, a nasty grin on his face, “Quentin,” he whispered out of the side of his mouth, “take care of your friends.”

Quentin nodded and flew off his shoulder just as the men attacked Lucifer. Q watched for a moment, but Lucifer obviously knew what he was doing.

His devil face appeared and Quentin watched as the men gasped, cowering.

Satisfied, he flew over to Margo and Eliot while their captors were busy. He used his magic to untie them and then manually removed their gags. Margo took a deep breath. “You’re a fucking hero, baby.”

Quentin smiled, shaky and wet, as he heard a body hit the floor. Eliot was not so pleased, apparently –

“You _idiot!_ ” he hissed, but Q knew he didn’t really mean it. “You could’ve gotten hurt.”

He held his head high and flapped his wings, “You both saved me when I needed it. How could I not return the favor?”

Eliot’s eyes softened. “ _Q_.”

Another body hit the floor and Lucifer cleared his throat, “So, how do you both feel?”

Margo tried to stand up but her legs shook and she fell back in the chair. “Fuckers,” she snarled. Q landed on her shoulder. “I’m okay, Q, just – ”

He knew she’d never say the word _weak_ , so she didn’t.

Eliot stood up with help from Lucifer while Quentin used his magic, a tangible thing, to help Margo to her feet. She smacked a kiss to the top of his head that left him giggling and flapping his wings.

They were okay. They were going to be okay.

On their way out, Quentin hesitated over the unconscious bodies of the men. His anger squeezed at every inch of his body, telling him to _do it._

He suddenly understood why Margo had wanted to kill his captors so badly. He wanted to do just that, too.

“Q,” he heard Eliot and looked up. He was watching him with soft eyes. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

Quentin took a deep breath, fluttered his wings, and followed them out of the building.

+

Lucifer helped them back to their apartment. “I will take care of them,” he told them as they both settled on the couch. “Make sure they never do this again.”

Eliot smiled, small and tired and thankful. “Thanks.”

“Will you all be okay on your own?” he asked though the question was mostly directed at Q.

Quentin nodded, confident. He followed Lucifer to the door and landed in the palm of his offered hands. “Words are – they’re not enough,” he said, truthfully, “but thank you, Lucifer.”

Lucifer smiled, soft around the edges. “You are a good friend, Q.”

“Thank you,” he replied automatically, “but… Margo and Eliot aren’t my friends. They’re my family.”

+

Quentin flew back over and landed on Eliot’s thigh. They weren’t too badly injured, thankfully, but they were banged up, a few scrapes and bruises on their faces.

That wasn’t the worst of it, though, he could feel that those people had nearly drained them of their magic. Magicians had limits, just like humans.

Too much magic at once could be a bad thing.

He took Eliot’s hand. “Margo?” he asked with big eyes, and she smiled, that private way she did for just Eliot and him, giving him her hand.

Quentin heard Eliot ask, “what are you doing, Q?”, but he didn’t answer, just focused on healing them, giving them back what those men had taken from them, replenishing their magic.

He heard Margo’s gasp and felt Eliot’s hand twitch. Looking up, they were both staring at him.

“Q,” Margo said with wide, wet eyes. “Fuck, that’s – wow.”

Eliot took a deep breath. “ _Wow_ ,” he agreed, brushing a finger down Quentin’s back.

+

Later that night, they all walked to Margo’s room. They hadn’t discussed it, but they all crawled into her bed together like it’d been planned anyway. Quentin had always admired how Eliot and Margo could have private conversations without ever actually opening their mouths.

Eliot laid down and Margo joined him, his arms wrapped tightly around her.

Then, “come on, Q,” Margo said, clearing her throat when it was a little scratchy. “Stop watching and get your little fairy ass over here.”

He smiled, flying over, and landed between them on the pillow. It was still soft as a cloud.

“Will you both be okay?” he asked, looking between them nervously.

Margo leaned over and kissed the top of his head. For once, his hair didn’t get caught in her gloss. “We _will_ be,” she said, uncharacteristically soft, “because of you, baby.”

Quentin’s heart blossomed with love for his little family. He had never thought he would have this.

He rolled over and peered at Eliot, who smiled at him so, so soft. He leaned in and bumped his nose against Q’s forehead, who giggled and playfully swatted at him.

“Thank you, Q,” he whispered. “For everything.”

Quentin didn’t understand what he was thanking him for. “I just did what you both did for me, all those years ago,” he said, meaning every word of it. He felt happy to be able to return the favor though he would’ve obviously preferred if he never had to.

“Okay,” Margo said through a yawn. “Enough sappy shit. I’m tired, boys.”

Quentin giggled again and rolled onto his back. He glanced between them, his favorite people, his family.

“Goodnight, Margo,” he said before he turned to look at Eliot. “Goodnight, Eliot.”

They both replied in unison, “Goodnight, Q.”


End file.
